Brave New World
by ProjecTAiRplanes
Summary: In a war over ideals, four best friends decide to enlist in the newly founded Japanese army to help serve their country. However, it wasn't as simple as they had expected; tragedy, bloodshed, and a struggle for survival soon become the world in which they live. Friendships are tested and new love is found; they just need to make it out alive. AU, Shizaya; longer summary inside.
1. Prescript

_A/N: Hi. So uhm..._ _this is going to be a war setting fic with the raijin days group. So its AU. It takes place in the future with a war created by me, Tai, and two other people who will be continuously working on this fic together. We made a lot of plans... I just tend to write slow. Some chapters will be by my otouto-chan, (yes I know otouto means brother and she's a girl but theres a reason) so if you notice a different writing style that's why. Also, we have my Shizuchan who is a war buff and so she does a lot of research on weapons and other war things. So we hope its pretty accurate. _

_It'll be kind of (really) OOC, as Shizuo and Izaya are best friends and kinda secretly have little crushes on eachother to start with. Izaya's kinda small and weak but Shizuo's still pretty stong (just not to the extent of the anime.) Also, this prescript is from my character's POV, but don't worry, our self-inserts won't be very important or even show up really until the end. This is a Shizaya story about the Raijin boys with necessary OC's for character fill, and canon characters as well.  
Anyway, enough of my rambling, please read and enjoy, and if you have anything to say then review and tell us!_

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_Prescript_

June 3, 2042

The world is falling apart...

It seemed inevitable, like the world was destined to come to this. It was already slowly getting out of its balance even after WWII, and even worse after Iraq. But this was predestined, no doubt. Everything's been screwed up since the Cold War, which didn't help this current predicament; the third world war.

Right now, we, the United States are fighting the only other war besides the Civil War on our own soil. Against Canada, who we fought once, and lost to. We cannot lose again, however. We're losing too many soldiers that can't be replaced easily...

Ah, I should probably explain what this war is about. It's a war over ideals. A multinational space project headed by NASA, discovered a planet with the capability to harbor life, just like Earth. Unfortunately, there was a disagreement over what to do with it.

Do we launch drones and study it?

Do we leave it be for the future?

Or do we just go in and take it over for all its got?

This is what caused the mess. Ironic, isn't it? Right now, the United States, Japan, Sweden, China, and Italy all vote for just studying and preserving it.

Germany, Russia, France, Canada, and eastern countries are for the latter; take it all.

However, after WWII, we abolished Japan's military after we defeated them. Now that they're on our side, we had to help them re-establish their military, sending some of our soldiers to train them. Then Canada attacked us, forcing all the American troops to be sent back to defend the front lines. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, and we had no choice but to pull troops still stationed in South Korea. That led to Korea being completely taken over by communism.

Just another fuel for the fire...

China is on our side, thank god, but is attempting to take Korea altogether. It would help, no doubt... But communism... Cold War tensions are obviously still lingering, perhaps another reason we're against Russia.

Ah, anyway, while we were still stationed in Japan, I was one of the soldiers sent to train their growing military. I remember... these boys that I particularly enjoyed the company of... it was sad to leave them behind...

The littlest one was named, er... Isaiah? Something like that - a Japanese version of it. His best friend was completely opposite - big, strong, and bleached blonde. Still, I have never seen friends that close...

Their other friends had brown hair, one was pretty tall and a bit tan, the other kind of small with glasses, but he was usually training with the nurses. I sure do hope they're alright...

Maybe I'll even see them again... Hopefully we left them in good hands with Sweden...


	2. Prologue

_A/N: Okay, here's the prologue, now we start getting to plot and the boys! We have like an entire soundtrack and love quotes from Criminal Minds so each Arc has one!_

* * *

_Story: Brave New World  
Theme Song: This is War – 30 Seconds to Mars_

_Quote: "Experience is a brutal teacher, but __you learn_. _My God_, _do you learn_." ― C.S. Lewis 

_Prologue_

"Hey, you, little flea, where do you think you're going, eh?" A monstrous blond roared. "Don't think you can escape me that easily!"

"Ehhh~? Shizu-chan, I just wanna go home," the little raven cooed, having packed up his things and planned on heading out the door. "I have homework to do and don't have time for silly protozoans," he stated with an animated shrug, hands and all, grinning.

Chuckling, Shizuo quickly threw his books into his dirty, cream colored messenger bag.

"Since when doesn't my flea wait for me, eh?"  
"I am, aren't I?" He smiled sweetly, leaving the blond unable to avoid a smile as well.

Kyohei sighed at the sight of his two friends _obviously_ flirting, both wondering when in the hell they'd just get on with it and hoping their fruity tendencies didn't rub off on him.

"How come we're always the last to leave?" He asked aloud, noticing the empty classroom. The sun was giving the now peaceful and quiet room a slight orange tint, elongating the boys' shadows and adding a light shine to their features.

"Eh, dunno. We're hipsters, I suppose." Izaya shrugged, turning to leave the room just as his slightly taller, glasses-clad friend was entering – causing a collision of sorts and an unhappy raven who's bottom was currently throbbing with small pains.

"Well, hello there Shinra, it sure is nice to bump into you once in a while," voiced the irritated raven from his place on the floor, looking with a pout at his friend who managed not to fall over.

"Ah, sorry, Izaya! Bad timing, I suppose, eheh, right?" He spoke nervously, that same obnoxious tone yet with an edge to it. He held his hand out to help the fallen raven up, but found Shizuo already beat him to it, picking Izaya up from under his arms and trying to hold back laughter. He failed.

"Pfft, jeez Iza-chan, do you know how funny you looked, flailing as you fell over like a clumsy schoolgirl? Ha!" He grinned, only allowing it to spread wider as the infuriated and very red (more from embarrassment than anger) raven snapped his head back at him, a shaking frown on his adorable face.

"Hey! I's not my fault stupid Shinra had to come prancing in here like some grizzly bear– AH! A-ha, ha, Sh-shizu-chan S-STOP IT! B-aha-Brute! Eeei!"  
Izaya's voice gained a few octaves as he tried to sound demanding through his laughing, but it really only helped Shizuo's comparison of him to a schoolgirl as he tickled his sides playfully.

Attempting to take control of the atmosphere, Shinra sightly raised his shaking voice to get their attention, as well as Kyohei's who took to staring at the slightly colored leaves outside the large window.

"H-hey guys, can we sit for a moment, I-I have something to tell you all!" He started, feeling relieved as Shizuo and Izaya stopped their antics and looked at him with (matching) confused faces (yet Izaya was still slightly off the ground).

"...Alright, go ahead." Kyohei complied, taking a seat in one of the desks still pushed against three others, as they had just been working in a group of four before class ended. The two best friends also returned to their seats. Izaya took note of his bespectacled friend's serious yet nervous demeanor as he took the remaining desk, a little too much of a thump and extra breath being released as he sat.

"What's wrong, Shinra?" The raven decided to voice his question resulting from his observations after a moment of silence.

"W-well, yesterday, I f-found out something from my father, and since you guys are my friends I thought I should probably let you know..."

"Okay?" said Shizuo, while Kyohei and Izaya looked at him expectantly.

"Its pretty serious, and I don't think there's a way for me to get out of it, but try not to freak out, please, you know, my dad's pretty odd-"

"Out with it Shinra!" Shizuo demanded impatiently.

"Alright, alright," he swallowed. "Well, I dunno if you heard, but everyone's pretty sure there's going to be some tension and issues over that new planet recently discovered-"

"Oh, I heard about that," Izaya cut in. "Some countries wanna use it all up and some wanna leave it be."

"Yeah, Japan is on the latter side... and well, America has been preparing for war, and have even sent troops over here to rebuild our army and such... Everyone's sure there's gonna be some intense fighting going on... and soon, too..."

"Why would American forces want to send troops to Japan?" Kyohei wondered.

" W-well, they think it'll be convenient to use Japan to attack nations closer to us-"

"So, what does this have to do with you?" Shizuo inquired nervously.

Kyohei and Izaya looked at him, beginning to understand what they had all been wondering, that Shizuo had voiced.

After a few moments of deathly silence, Shinra took a preparing breath, about to tell his three best friends something that would change all of them gravely, forever, until their death- whenever those ever-questioned dreams may come.

"My father has been recruited to be a doctor... in the clinics... in the war... away from Japan. "

The other three held their breath a long moment. "...And he's taking me with him."

All at once the air was forcefully taken from their lungs, the words a powerful vacuum to their unprepared chests.

Izaya was the first to speak. "B-but he can't! We're only just graduating this year- and I mean that's so dangerous, and unfair, and you'll be so far away!"

"Where are you being sent to..? The slightly calmer yet still anxious Kyohei asked, Shizuo being surprisingly quiet.

"We don't know yet... wherever we attack first... probably Germany..."

"Germany! Shinra! You can't! You're our friend, I- we can't let you go alone!" Izaya exclaimed, standing up and slamming his hands on the table.

Finally, Shizuo spoke up, surprisingly bearing a small smile and brows furrowed in determination. "Then we won't. I'll sign up too. I'm strong, I can handle it, and I'll make sure you don't get hurt-"

"Shizuo!" Izaya snapped his head to stare at him, eyes wide and shaking with despair.

"Shizuo, you can't, what if you both get hurt, Shizu-chan, what if you never come back, you can't..." He trailed off, feeling a large hand run through his hair, and he sat down. "You can't leave me..." he added in a melancholy whisper.

"I'll come back... I promise..."

"I'll sign up too." All eyes turned to Kyohei. "I don't really have any big plans for after school. I'm pretty strong too, I think I can handle it."

"Dotachin! Not you too! W-well, fine, if you all sign up I will too, I'm not going to be left here all alone!" The frantic raven declared, yet he looked like he was about to fall over.

"Izaya..."

"Don't look at me like that Shizu-chan, if you're going I am too...!" Once again caught in a tense, soundless moment, the four looked at each other, sighing almost simultaneously. Shinra broke the silence.

"You guys... you really are the best..."

"Together to the end, right?" Shizuo smiled, holding out a fist.

"Yeah..." Shinra nodded, connecting his fist with Shizuo's outstretched one.

"Sounds like a plan." Kyohei joined them.

_'I'm going to get stronger... I'm going to get stronger, for Shizu-chan! Shizu-chan, Shinra, and Dotachin!'_

"Together forever, to the end of time! No matter what!" Izaya exclaimed, sounding like an overly determined 10 year old as he sent out his fist to join the other three. Shizuo couldn't help but smile fondly, a light pink dusting his sun-kissed cheeks.

"I promise, I'll never let anything happen to you guys. Ever."


	3. Chapter 1: The Way Down

_Arc 1; Title : Life is a Game_

_Quote: "Life is a game. Play it. Life is too precious. Do not destroy it."_

_Song: The Way Down – The White Tie Affair_

_Chapter 1: The Way Down_

"Ahh, look Shizu-chan, you can see the whole world from up here!"

"Oi, you can't see the whole world, only Japan."  
"Don't be a joykill, Shizu-chan!" Izaya complained, pouting and turning back to the window.

"Why don't you get some rest, hmm? Once we land you know we won't be getting a lot of sleep." Shizuo warned him, reaching over to ruffle his raven hair a bit. Of course Izaya had picked the window seat, and of course Shizuo sat right next to him. Out of the normal obligations that come with being friends, Kyohei had sat in the third seat, next to Shizuo. Clad in light, deep green T-shirts, the three were finally heading to Prussia, where they were going to be stationed.

'Exciting' as it was, it wasn't a proper word to describe how they felt. But it was close. None of them knew either. They were nervous, scared, but prepared as well. Or, they thought they were. Of course, no amount of intensive training could prepare them for war. They just didn't know this yet.

"But Shizu-chan, I'm used to weird sleeping schedules...," he contradicted himself with a yawn, not removing his hands from the small window. "And it's a long plane ride so I can nap later." He nodded twice, straining to look above the seat in front of him with the intent of scanning the rest of the passengers for the back of some familiar heads. They had a made a few new friends while training, and wanted to make sure they were there; if only to help ease his nerves just a little.

His efforts went in vain as he felt a giant hand plop itself on his head, the rough circular movement causing it to roll around on his shoulders as his hair was ruffled. He pouted adorably with his eyes scrunched shut before swatting at the offending hand.

"Stop lying, you're tired as hell, and by the way you nearly fell over every day during physical training, I doubt you're used to waking up at four in the morning." Shizuo grinned, knowing he won this round when Izaya sent him a weak glare accompanied by another yawn.

"Ne, Shizu, you know I didn't really get sleep at home either..." He frowned, then squeaked suddenly, eyes open wide as he was pulled into a warm shoulder. He immediately melted to the gentle feeling of Shizuo's thumb lightly caressing his temple.  
"Well, training wasn't exactly easy for you either. I remember the first time you tried to pick up a machine gun." Shizuo smirked, chuckling through his teeth, a lovely picture of a little raven falling over after the weight of a heavy weapon was shoved into his fragile arms appearing in his mind.

Apparently, the same picture made its way into Izaya's head as he quickly blushed and weakly slammed his fist against the blonde's chest. He would have retaliated more, but his head was still being held gently and he really didn't want to separate from Shizuo's shoulder.

"Sh-shut up, stupid protozoan! That gun was heavier than I was!"

"You also slipped on bullet casings during target practice..."

"I'll cut you!"

At that Shizuo all out laughed, not that it was heard throughout the noisy cabin of wild teenagers. It seemed that most of them, like Izaya, were too excited or anxious to sleep. Kyohei, forever calm, was actually slightly dozing off. However, overhearing the exchange of banter between his two friends, he decided there was no harm in joining in.

"There was that other time during target practice where the recoil was so strong the gun hit you in the head, and you almost fell... Didn't Shizuo have to catch you?" Izaya slightly jumped, a frown stretching across his face.

"Ahh, not you too Dotachin! Just because you two happen to be like professional gun masters or something doesn't mean you can make fun of me!"

"Yeah yeah, you know I'm only-"  
"I WILL CUT YOU."  
To Izaya's dismay, the other two only laughed at his threat. Its not like he couldn't, they all knew he excelled when it came to using knives in battle. He couldn't aim through a barrel but he could aim with his arm.

"I remember how all of the nurses would giggle at you after Shinra left. He seemed to be the only one who could tolerate all of your random injuries." Kyohei mused.

"Shinra... I miss Shinra." Izaya stated. "At least we should see him after we get there, right?"  
"I don't see why not. We were assigned to the same post. Good job changing the subject by the way." Shizuo grinned at his last remark.  
"Shut up protozoan." Izaya mumbled into his shoulder. The blonde couldn't help but smile at his drooping eyes, and stole a glance out the window himself. Seeing Japan from this type of perspective was amazing, and pretty humbling as well. Izaya was right – viewing the world through the clouds was beautiful. His attention was quickly stolen away by the female flight attendant who had just reached them. The basket she pushed along was almost empty, considering they were seated in the back of the plane.

"Would you boys like anything to eat or drink?" The obviously automatic question was asked as the girl tucked her hair behind her ear and seemed to focus her 'friendly' smile on Shizuo. Being an observer of people, Izaya noticed without much effort, and completely consciously gripped Shizuo's sleeve, snuggling closer onto his shoulder. He knew he had felt something, knew he wanted her to go away, but he didn't know exactly what it was flitting around in his chest that caused his reaction. Shizuo, ever oblivious, nodded at the girl and pointed to the last bag of cookies. Izaya grit his teeth at the overly animated "Of course!" as she leaned over Kyohei to hand Shizuo the little bag, which seemed to irritate the brunette as well. He frowned and leaned back into his seat as far as possible.

Reluctantly, Kyohei asked for one of the biscuit packets and Izaya shook his head when she turned her attention to him. He didn't like processed food. He also didn't like her, and tried to force that across with his glare.  
"Ah, Izaya, you have to eat something. You'll pass out if you don't..." Shizuo frowned, looking at Izaya with concern. When Izaya only turned away, the blonde decided to just get him one of the little packets of milk bread.

With another smooth "Sure~" from Izaya's current threat, he nearly growled when she put her hand _on Shizuo's leg _to lean over and hand the bread to Izaya. The fuming raven grit his teeth as he ripped it out of her hands, gripping Shizuo's shirt tighter. She stood back up with a slight bounce, seeming unphased by the red eye-ed death glare. "Drinks?"

Opting for water, Izaya was glad when she finally left, not one bit pleased with the little wink that she gave his oblivious best friend. He partly knew why he was so upset but another part had no idea why he felt the intense urge to throw a blade at the back of her head.

"Something wrong Iz? You're shaking – are you cold?" Shizuo tilted his head at him, taking his hand away from his bag of cookies to wrap his arm around the raven's shoulder in an attempt to make him warmer. "This is why you need to eat. Where's your bread? Need me to open it?"  
"Oi, I'm not that weak Shizu-chan!' Izaya whined playfully, his anger dissipating at the warm touch. He reminded himself that Shizuo was just oblivious, and besides, he'd always put him before anything.

"Yeah yeah, you're struggling, give it to me."

Then there was that nagging dread that stabbed at his heart and pulsated through his mind; in the frontline that was their near future, just how much would Shizuo give up for him? How far would he go to protect him?

"...Thanks, Shizuo..." Izaya mumbled, smiling as he took a bite out of his bread. Swallowing a cookie, Shizuo couldn't help but voice his curiosity over the lack of nickname.  
"Eh? No Shizu-chan? Shizzy? Seriously, whats up?"  
"... I'm mad at you Shizu~! You're so mean to me, making fun of me just because you're so strong and amazing at fighting! I'm jealous!" Izaya decided to tease playfully instead of saying what was really on his mind. It wasn't that important, and he didn't want to ruin the mood or make the blonde worry.

"Hey now, don't be mad at me! I'm not the only one who's good at fighting... Besides, what about Kadota? They almost made him squad leader on the spot after that one wilderness trip where he totally controlled all those stupid guys." The two then turned to look at Kyohei.  
"...Well, I mean, someone had to..." He defended, shifting a bit under their gazes.

"Dotachin is just a natural leader. And Shizu-chan is a natural fighter. What does that make me?"

"The one who is supposed to be there and look cute." Shizuo answered without hesitation, realizing what he said and feeling the slight heat in his cheeks at Izaya's wide eyes and deep blush that followed.

"Wh-wha- that's- Sh-Shizu- SHUT UP!" Izaya squeaked and hid his red face in Shizuo's shoulder. The blonde was able to grin and chuckle at his embarrassment, while Kyohei only rolled his eyes. "It's comments like that that make us question you Shizuo." A half shrug was his only response.

After a few moments of peaceful quiet, Shizuo shifted his gaze over to the bundle of raven hair on his shoulder, and one look at his regular breathing told him that Izaya had fallen asleep. 'Finally...' Shizuo thought, leaning his own head back to let himself rest. Kyohei followed soon after.

"Hey love birds, will you quit sleeping on each other and get up? We're about to land." Kyohei's stern voice aroused the two best friends from their sleep, and they blinked groggily, taking in their surroundings.  
"Oh yeah... we're on a plane." Shizuo mumbled, lifting his head from where it apparently had fell on Izaya's- who had found he was holding onto Shizuo's arm in his sleep.

"Yeah, and we've been on a plane for twelve hours. And now its time to get off." Kyohei explained like he was talking to children, obviously grumpy from having been woken up not to long prior to the two.  
"Hmm... Prussia..." Izaya rubbed his eyes, finally detaching himself from Shizuo to look out the window. "It kinda doesn't look all that different from up here... but kind of does..."  
"Hnn, so this is it, eh?" Shizuo said more than asked, feeling the slight pain in his ears as they started to descend.  
"It's kinda ethereal, isn't it? Going down, down to whatever lies ahead..." Kyohei said quietly, as it seemed the rest of the cabin was hushed by the settling fact that it was all real – here they are...

"This must be the way down..." Izaya whispered to himself, seeing a seemingly small explosion go off somewhere in the barren desert they were headed towards. He was sure he felt Shizuo's fingers slightly brush over his own, and stayed there...

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_a/n: Ahn, sorry if there are any mistakes! All three of us read it so there shouldn't be too much... Also, I am a very slow writer so chapters are gonna take a while... and its gonna be long... ah. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter! _


	4. Chapter 2: Wherever you Go

_Arc 1; Title : Life is a Game_

_Quote: "Life is a game. Play it. Life is too precious. Do not destroy it."_

_Song: Fallin' Apart – All American Rejects_

_Chapter 2: Wherever You Go_

"Ewww, that's just gross," Izaya complained, wrinkling his nose at the deep _squish squish _his shoes made as he walked out of the small jet. They had only just arrived, and he couldn't help but notice the plane was already adorned with a lovely coat of dust. God, it seemed like he was just dropped off into the Sahara desert. Well, what he knew of it anyway. The slight shiver he got at the deceptively cold temperature accompanied with the large, almost empty landscape reminded him of a level of hell from Dante's Inferno. Deciding he didn't like that mental image, he turned to Shizuo in hopes he'd raise his spirits like usual.

"Shizu-chaaan, the ground feels like melted ice cream. And its all muddy. Shizu–"  
"That's because it's melted snow, stupid flea, now get out of the way before you get run over!" Shizuo warned, pushing him forward as more soldiers emerged from the plane. Izaya stumbled a bit and then had to nearly jog to keep up with Shizuo's long strides. Still, the continuous _squish squish_ droned in his ears as the entire platoon was walking in the offending slush now. He felt like he'd never get used to it.

The raven looked down, feeling dejected already. His head shot up, however, when he felt a giant hand plop itself on his shoulder, belonging to none other than Shizuo. "Hey, I'm sorry but you gotta watch out now, alright?" At this, Izaya felt a shiver of guilt and a creeping sense of self loathing run through his veins like a parasite. Shizuo was right, he needed to pay attention, and watch out for himself. Here, his best friend couldn't watch over him 24/7. If he did so, he'd surely die, and it'd be all Izaya's fault.  
"Izaya?"  
"A-ah, yeah, I'll be more careful, sorry Shizu-chan!" He covered, once again opting to not express his misgivings to the tall blonde. Before a response could be formed, the loud ring of a whistle calling them to attention sounded, and the boys scrambled to get into some sort of line. Though first-day instruction told them that the position included relaxed shoulders and head held high, almost every one of the inexperienced soldiers were tense and looking either at their shoes or the commander; Kyohei being one of the few actually doing it correctly.

"Alrigh', now recruits, this ain't camp nomore, this real deal!" The Master Sergeant, Ture Hermanson roared in horrible, broken Japanese. He was Swedish, one of those sent to Japan to train the developing army after the U.S. couldn't anymore. He wasn't that high up on the food chain, but he acted like he was a General or something. Shizuo hated his guts from the moment he arrived; the cocky Sergeant (at the time) hadn't wasted a moment before scolding Izaya for being so weak– just the way to get on Shizuo's 'bad side,' which was more like 'side that will not hesitate to rip your face off.'

Ture walked up and down the line of young men, successfully scaring the crap out of most of them, as he continued to belt out their orders. 'Go to your squadron, meet your team, and get to work. No mercy, so rest; every man for himself.' Shizuo felt he'd have a hard time with the last one. No matter how hard he tried, he knew he'd never be able to leave anyone behind. One of their American tutors taught them this. He remembered her well.

"_I know they'll tell you to fend for yourself, every man for himself, all that jazz, but don't listen to them. Never leave a man behind. Live by that, and you'll find your time there will be more rewarding. Even if you get injured or don't make it. You'll feel better."_

Suddenly everyone was moving. Oh, had he spaced out for that long? Ah well, who cares what that annoying old man had to say. He was just another asshole.

"Shizu-chan? Earth to Shizu-chan! It's time to go!" Izaya said, waving a hand in front of the blonde's face, only for it to be swatted away. "Yeah, yeah I know, I kinda just spaced out. What're we doing?" Shizuo asked, getting a playful sigh from Izaya as he grabbed his wrist and pulled him along behind the line of their fellow soldiers.

"Ne, hurry, Dotachin is waiting for us!" Indeed, the tall brunette was standing a little ways away, patiently waiting for his two friends to catch up.

"We're going to our squadrons and meeting them." Izaya explained. "Ah, I hope we're in the same group as some of our friends..."  
"I'm sure we will be, it's a small unit." Shizuo assured, his wrist now freed as they had caught up to everyone else.

The three could see large canvas tents set up, some green and some tan, some ripped and some perfect, some the size of a house and others like camping tents. Small fires were lit that almost gave it a camping like atmosphere–almost–and more small streams of smoke rising to the murky sky dotted the large expanse of land.

"Oi, you three!"

_Eh?_

Kyohei, Izaya and Shizuo turned to see a vaguely familiar face walking toward them; short brown dreadlocks tied back, full uniform, plenty of badges, yet he sauntered casually, his hands in his pockets.  
"Ah, Sergeant Tom-san! I didn't know you'd be here!" Izaya said, bowing. The other two quickly followed the action. Izaya always remembered everyone he met. He was good like that. It made people feel special to be remembered.

"Oi, nice to see you guys. It's been a while– surprised you know I'm a Sergeant now, Izaya-san." Tom greeted with a small smile. That was another thing. Izaya always seemed to know everything about everyone. It was slightly creepy, but people tend to ignore it. He was too charming for people to really care. The ravenette simply nodded his head to acknowledge Tom's remark.  
"Don't you guys worry about that big loaf, I know more about combat then him even though he's ranked higher. No one really listens to him once they realize he's an idiot. Now c'mon, you guys are with me." Tom explained, turning and walking toward one of the large green canvas tents.

"Eh? Really?" Shizuo asked, eyes widening. He hesitated to start walking, and had to have Izaya drag him once again. "You were right Shizu-chan, we're already with someone we know!" Izaya smiled happily.

As they approached the camp, they saw other new recruits beginning to get situated into the camp; loading weapons, choosing beds, and simply talking. Kyohei looked around and recognized some of their friends.

"Hmm, seems like he's not the only one. Look, there's–"

"NAOYA-KUN, YUUCH–" Izaya began yelling and waving, being so excited he accidentally tripped over one of the guns lying around. "Ow..."

"Izaya-kun! Are you okay?" A short, thin and pale boy with maroon hair ran towards Izaya after he fell. Of course, Shizuo had picked him up before anyone even got close.

"Oi, be careful" Shizuo warned.  
"Mm." Izaya nodded, smiling, then turning to his friend. Another boy, with darker blond hair than Shizuo's, almost orange, had approached and was standing behind the first; a wide grin on his face.  
"Yo! Looks like you guys are stuck with us, eh? Sounds like a blast!" He exclaimed animatedly, throwing one of his arms around the shorter maroon haired boy's shoulders. "Yuuya and I were hoping we'd be able to see you three once we got here. What a coincidence, doncha think–"  
"Naoya, will you shut up?" Shizuo growled playfully, lightly hitting him in the shoulder. Naoya and Yuuya were both boys they had met while training, and had became friends with the three of them. Yuuya and Izaya were similar, as they were both pretty frail; which is why Yuuya passed Shizuo's 'test' to become friends with Izaya, though the blonde would be lying if he said that Izaya giving him a nickname, Yuu-chan, didn't bother him.

"Oi, don't be so cruel~! So, you guys with us then? Better pick your beds fast, so you guys can sleep next to each oth-" Naoya began, being quickly silenced by a large hand covering his face.  
"Thanks for the advice." Shizuo stated flatly.

"Actually, that sounds like a good plan. I'm going inside." Kyohei piped in, walking passed the group and into the tent. Shizuo and Izaya decided to follow him, leaving Naoya and Yuuya outside, who explained they wanted a head start on getting acquainted with the camp. Luckily for the two best friends, there were two adjacent beds open that they quickly claimed, placing their small backpacks onto the beds. They didn't bring a lot, and didn't have much to even bring; besides, they were only supposed to be here a short amount of time. Kyohei's bed wasn't too far away from the two, and their other friends seemed to be in the nearby vicinity as well. They were starting to feel more optimistic about the entire ordeal, seeing so many friendly faces and the fact it was pretty quiet.

The two smiled at each other briefly, leaving the tent side by side. Despite the fact it was kind of crowded as the new soldiers swarmed like the pestering flies, it was... peaceful.

And then... a scream.

* * *

_a/n: Tai: I'm sorry for short chapter! I just felt that would be a good place to end. But chapter three is finished and it's longer then the other chapters! I just like being a chapter ahead, so I won't upload it until I finish 4. Besides, Shizuchan needs to read it first. I know it already takes us forever to update but school is going to start in a week which means even less time to work... Sorry! I will try. Not to mention Roppi-chan, my computer, kind of hates life and refuses to listen to me. Not enough Tsuki-chan, I guess!  
Otouto-chan: BEWARE OF SUGAR HIGH -SHOT-_


	5. Chapter 3: Parade Before the Pain

_Arc 1; Title : Life is a Game_

_Quote: "Life is a game. Play it. Life is too precious. Do not destroy it."_

_Song: Young – Hollywood Undead_

_Chapter 3: Parade Before the Pain_

"E-eh What was that?" Izaya asked, startled from the sudden noise. Shizuo instinctively moved closer to the raven, looking around for the source of the scream. As he looked, he noticed many of the younger and newer soldiers were doing the same, while the older ones simply continued on with their tasks. It was then both boys looked over towards the medical tent, seeing an all to familiar brunette stumble out, looking dazed.

"Shinra!" Izaya yelled, rushing right over to his friend, Shizuo following close behind. Shinra looked up, eyes widening a bit when he saw the two boys who he hasn't seen for months. Of course, he was here earlier than the rest of them, untold of when new squadrons would arrive or when he would be reunited with his friends. In all truth, he didn't know for sure if they'd ever come. So of course he froze for a few seconds, just barely holding back tears from his bright eyes, leaving small dewdrops to glisten over his eyelashes, before he smiled and was embraced by a flailing Izaya.

"Izaya! Shizuo! I can't believe you guys finally made it here..." The brunette grinned, petting Izaya's silky hair. "Heh, good to see you too." Shizuo added, ruffling the apprentice doctor's hair a bit as well.

"Are you alright? We heard a loud scream! What happened?" Izaya questioned, finally letting go of Shinra. "Ah, just setting someone's broken bones... some people _really _don't like it." He answered honestly, rubbing his shoulder. "You can tell when they actually hit you during the process..." He laughed.

"Broken bones? Does that happen often?" Izaya frowned, as the group began to walk away from the medic tent to no where in particular.

"Not always, usually gunshot wounds, or barbed wire, sometimes cuts and even infections." Shinra rambled honestly, watching as his friends' faces contorted in horror more and more with each word.

"Really... that bad?" Shizuo managed to ask.  
"N-no! Not always, just when there's fighting. Its not too busy over here, so its actually pretty quiet most of the time. How it is now really is how it is most of the time. Some people find it annoying and just want the action, while others others are grateful."  
"I think I'll just go ahead and be happy that its not so eventful..." Izaya sighed. After walking a little bit more, they spotted Kyohei chatting with Tom near one of the campfires. When he noticed Shinra, he excused himself right away to get reacquainted with the bubbling brunette. He was starting to act more like himself, now that he knew all his friends were with him, like they promised.

"Oi, you guys. If you wanna get anything for dinner you're better off getting to the mess hall early or there won't be anything left." Tom informed them as he walked up, a few smaller soldiers behind him.  
"Ah, thanks for the tip." Shizuo responded immediately, starting off in some direction before Izaya called out to him.  
"Shizu-chan? Where are you going?"  
"To get some food, I'm starving!"  
"But... you don't even know where the mess hall is..." Izaya half mumbled, furrowing his eyebrows in worry. Did the protozoan get hit in the head or something? Or was he so deprived of food that his brain stopped working?

"...Oh yeah." Shizuo replied flatly, taking the few steps back to the group. Somehow he didn't seem embarrassed or flustered at all. Izaya didn't know how he could always remain so uncaring about stupid mistakes he made. If that was the raven himself, he'd be blushing and covering his face in pure shame.

"Now, if you don't mind, I'll show you where the mess hall is." Tom half laughed, half grunted as he started walking in just about the complete opposite way Shizuo had earlier. The four boys followed him, along with the other soldiers who had been with him before. One was a boy slightly taller than Izaya and Shinra, with an older looking face cropped by short brown hair and wide gray eyes. The other was a woman who, with her overly shiny blonde hair, token blue eyes, and exaggerated hourglass shape, looked more like she belonged on a runway, not a battlefield. The boy looked a bit shy around these newcomers, but the girl seemed to have no qualms about walking right up next to them.

"Well hi there! You guys are new, just look at those innocent faces~ I'm Kerstin from Sweden~ And what's your names?" She said in an accent that sounded just a little over done. Izaya had to stop dead as she had walked right in front of him, of course, right in between Shizuo and Kyohei, separating him from them. Izaya glared and Shinra adjusted his glasses and coughed, looking over toward Izaya who returned the gaze. The silent conversation between them only took a few moments; they did not like her.

Luckily, the two taller boys seemed completely uninterested.  
"Kyohei." he gave her his name just to be nice.

Deciding against getting pissed off, Shizuo quietly grunted his name as he fell back to walk next to Izaya. Kerstin pouted and continued trying to talk to Kyohei, who would respond nonchalantly, but respond nonetheless, simply because that's how he was. The boy who had been quiet before decided to speak up, seeing Izaya brighten when the blonde returned to him.  
"H-hi, my name is Hasse. I'm from Sweden too... I-It's nice to meet you!" he mumbled shyly. He didn't seem bad at all, and Izaya smiled up at him. "Nice to meet you too, I'm Izaya."

Hasse nodded, and Shinra spoke up. "Izaya is the friend I was talking about, along with Shizuo and Kyohei." He said to Hasse, who he met soon after arriving to Prussia. He told just about everyone about his friends who were coming, definitely, one day they'd all be together.

"Well, we're here." Tom said suddenly. They were in front of a large tent, if one could call it that; it didn't have any 'walls', just a dark green canvas over some wooden columns stuck into the mud. "It's not a 'mess hall' per se, but it's the best we got." Tom explained. There were wooden tables placed in rows underneath, others who came a bit early dispersed randomly on the seats. A smell wafted away from the cafeteria-like food station, conflicted between savory and disgusting, while the soldiers forced to cook looked absolutely miserable, a clear warning to _never _piss them off because surely they'll spit in your food. Kerstin ran off to bother someone else and Kyohei sighed in relief at finally being left alone. Izaya shuttered as she bounced passed him–her chest was so big and how could something like that be possible and wow that's terrifying–

"Are you okay, Izaya? You look like you saw a ghost." Shizuo asked, looking worried as he was the only one who hadn't started walking toward the tent. Izaya quickly shook his head a bit and smiled, a cheerful "Nothing!" leaving his lips as he followed everyone else to the food. They grabbed dingy trays and distasteful mush was slaped onto them; though once in a while they'd come across food that looked like it came from a restaurant. There was a mixture of Swedish food and Japanese food, and when Izaya found ootoro he nearly dropped his tray in joy.

"You like sushi little one?" A tall black man said in an accent neither Swedish or Japanese. He was large and looked kind of threatening but at the same time smiled gently.  
"Y-yes! Ootoro is my favorite! Did you make it?"  
"Yes I did. You come every day and I give you extra, yes?" He asked, placing five pieces of the precious sushi.

"Ah! That's so nice! Thank you!" He smiled sweetly, accepting the sushi and deciding he couldn't eat any more. Shizuo followed Izaya to one of the closer tables, and he smiled to himself. He didn't know that man, but he decided he liked him, simply for being nice to Izaya.

The two sat together and were soon joined by Kyohei and Shinra, as well as Hasse who shyly asked if he could sit with them too; Izaya approved immediately and no one else could say any different once he made up his mind. They were eventually joined by Naoya and Yuuya as well, along with another boy they introduced as Hiro, who was a medic apprentice with Shinra. He was the same size as Shinra, with similarly brown and shaggy but shorter hair, and was very polite. He had left suddenly in the middle of eating and returned with a girl who enthusiastically introduced herself as Umeko, a medic apprentice with bright red pigtails and eye-catching purple eyes. Their table was just about full with all the people sitting, and Izaya and Shizuo were squished together, not like they minded. Everyone was talking and joking and swearing on whatever god they believed in that they would show the enemy not to mess with them; it was easy to forget they were so close to tragedy.

At one point Naoya was telling a story, throwing himself over his friends Yuuya and Hiro, starting a chain reaction causing the rest of them to be pushed into each other, and Shinra to fall off the bench. They all couldn't help laughing, even Shinra was giggling. Izaya and Shizuo, pressed against each other, looked at one another and smiled.

_Perhaps this really was a good idea._

_Maybe this is where we belong_

_after all._

* * *

"I guess we better get a head start on sleeping, I'm sure we'll be busy tomorrow." Izaya suggested, returning to their tent. Shinra had left to go sleep where the medic tent was, and they had said short goodbyes with a smile before departing. The rest of the people they sat with had come along too, since most of them had the same destination anyway. Before they had left, however, Hasse had come up to them shyly and thanked them for letting him sit with them.  
_"I don't usually get to sit with so many people like that. It was fun... Th-thank you!"_  
They told him it was no problem and they were glad he had fun. He slept in a different tent, so he had to leave them. He was older than them, but seemed so small, and it made them happy with themselves, like they were making good decisions so far. That they truly made the right choice, that they really belonged there.

"Yeah, sounds like a good plan. Waking up early is gonna be a pain." Shizuo responded. Kyohei was already prepared for bed and reading a book, while the others got changed. There really wasn't anywhere private, as the bathroom was full with a line outside of it by now, so they simply turned away as they undressed. Izaya blushed slightly, and swore he felt like he was being watched; but he figured it was just his mind, since it was so open. His intuition wasn't wrong, however, as a certain blonde kept peaking over his shoulder at the raven's slim body, _so pale, almost glowing, not a blemish, so perfect... Oh crap, better turn around before he notices..._  
He blushed, feeling slightly horrible and perverted, quietly sitting on his own bed once he finished. Izaya sat on his bed as well and pulled out his sketchbook along with a pencil, and started doodling.

Shizuo figured he'd ask what he was drawing tomorrow; Izaya didn't like to show drawings until they were finished. In the mean time, he lyed down and watched the raven work.

After a few minutes, Izaya yawned and put the book under his bed, then getting up and walking over to Shizuo.

"I'm gonna go to sleep Shizu-chan. Goodnight." He said sweetly, leaning down to lightly nuzzle in the blonde's shoulder. Shizuo smiled softly, petting the raven's silky hair, and kissing him lightly in the forehead. Luckily just about everyone was busy talking or asleep; either way they weren't paying much attention. Izaya returned to his bed and pulled the blanket over himself snuggling in as comfortable as he could get in the dainty old bed.

It didn't take long for the sound of Shizuo's snoring to reach his ears. Somehow, it didn't bother him much.

He could feel sleep taking him slowly– he hoped it wouldn't be disrupted by nightmares, even though given where they were, it was very likely. He had just hoped being away from his house and with Shizuo would suppress them, at least a bit.

_At least... just... for now..._

_Eh? What's that... sound..._

Izaya's eyes flew open, and he sat up quickly, looking around. Everyone else was sound asleep–did he dream it? No, it wasn't a dream, because he could still hear the loud hum... he got up, and quickly but silently ran to Shizuo's bed, and shook him awake.

"AH– wha whaa's goin' onn...?" Shizuo slurred, being shushed by Izaya.

"I hear something! Do you hear it? What is it?" he whispered, still slightly afraid.

A few moments of silence, except for the noise, until...

"Airplanes."

"Airplanes?"

"Yeah, its just some planes flying somewhere. Probably delivering supplies or going to fight. It's fine, don't be scared."  
"Yeah I hear the planes but, there was something else and it was like– " He began just as a loud _BOOM _was heard in the distance, along with what sounded like a large machine gun.

"It's probably an air flight, between the planes, then... Don't be scared..." The blonde reassured softly, petting the raven's hair.

"Shizu-chan... I'm scared... What if–"

"Shh. Come here." Shizuo whispered, pulling Izaya into his bed with him. 'Don't be scared. It's fine. Go back to sleep, okay?"

"...Okay..."

* * *

_a/n: Tai: I AM SOOO SOOORRYYYYYYY I TAKE FOREVER TO WRITEEEE usually I wait till the next chapter is done but I can't keep the few of you reading waiting AHHH I is so sowwy ;w; I promise there will be less sweet and cutesy and more drama in chapter 4...well... not really. But it'll start! Please, don't leave us! Also, sorry my writing isn't really that good..._

_I don't think the other two have much to say._


	6. Chapter 4: An Innocent Child

_Arc 1; Title : Life is a Game_

_Quote: "Life is a game. Play it. Life is too precious. Do not destroy it."_

_Song: World So Cold – 12 Stones_

_Chapter 4: An Innocent Child with a Thorn in his Heart_

_ Yelling... activity... people... voices... Shizu-chan– _

Izaya could feel himself slowly being dragged into consciousness as distant noise made its way into his awareness, and he groggily opened his eyes and sat up. He looked around, seeing his own bed, and felt cold; looking over to his side, he saw Shizuo wasn't there. This kind of upset him, but he also felt overwhelming curiosity. What was going on? He knew where he was_– _just not what was _happening_. A moment of panic set in and his heart rate jumped before a mop of blond hair made its way into Izaya's vision, and he calmed seeing Shizuo walk up to him.

"Hey you. I can't believe you slept through all of that. You didn't get very much sleep last night, did you...?" Boy, was he right. Izaya shook his head. He couldn't shake the terror he felt, even sleeping next to Shizuo. It didn't help that when he could sleep, nightmares ran free inside his unconscious mind. With all of that put into play, it wasn't surprising he slept through... whatever happened.

"What did I sleep through, Shizu-chan?" He asked, rubbing his eyes. Shizuo smiled softly at the cute scene, crouching by the bed.

"The jackass Sergeant or whatever came in here yelling his puffy head off to wake everyone up at four in the morning. Tom made him cut it out and let you sleep. Its about six right now." He explained, nodding over to everyone else milling about outside the tent.

"Ah, really? What did I miss?" Wow, he felt guilty; he got to sleep while everyone else was up. They probably hated him.

"Eh, nothing much, just some of the guys trying to choose the bigger weapons and goofing off. C'mon, get ready, I think they're gonna send us out soon. The bathroom should be empty. I'll see you outside." He said, standing up and motioning to the bathroom. Izaya watched him walk out, blinking a few times to rid his eyes of sleep before forcing himself up and over to his own bed. Grabbing some desert camo pants and a shirt, he stumbled to the bathroom to change. The beds were all messy, blankets and clothes mixed together like nothing mattered. It was nothing like the training camp, where they said all beds always had to be made perfectly and clothes folded neatly.

After changing and getting ready for the day, he went outside and was immediately greeted by Shizuo, Yuuya and Naoya. Well, more like an over-excited Naoya shoving a small gun into his hands.

"That's a Desert Eagle, Semi Automatic Pistol Mark VII! Nice and light, only 3 pounds since you're a bit weak~" Naoya explained, winking at the end. Izaya just kind of looked at him with a confused expression as he took the gun and put it in his belt. "Th-thanks...?" He didn't really know much about guns and he didn't like them. He preferred knives; they were lighter and more manageable. Not to mention they instilled more fear in humans, as he learned in Psychology studies. He'd rather have people comply with his demands then actually using force. So he always carried an eight inch tatang with a curved hilt in a special belt for it, simply because he really liked it and his trainers let him have one after seeing his skill (as he was lacking in the gun department).

Meanwhile, Shizuo was bringing the strap of another gun over his head, adjusting it to be as comfortable as possible. Izaya gaped when he looked over. It was huge!  
"Shizu-chan! What _is_ that!? How do you _carry_ it?!" He squeaked, walking to his side and staring at the gun.  
Shizuo let his eyes look up at the sky, mouthing something quickly like he was trying to remember something before nodding slightly and responding. "M240B General Purpose Machine Gun." He recited a bit slowly, having to stop a few times. "I can never remember the stupid names." He laughed. Looking around, Izaya noticed that Kyohei and Naoya were both carrying what looked like different types of rifles, and Yuuya had a small gun like him. He then looked back at Shizuo.  
"It looks so... _heavy._" The raven reiterated, placing his hands on the bottom to get an idea of the weight. "Yeah, it's supposed to be on a stand or something but I can actually carry it pretty easily." The blonde shrugged. Izaya just shook his head. "You're insane, Shizu-chan." The accused simply chuckled.

Not too long later, the entire patrol was set. It consisted of a dirty blonde woman with her hair in a bun, Solvig Bjornsson, a Swedish Corporal who was head of the patrol, Kyohei as second in command, Shizuo, Izaya, Naoya, Yuuya, and Hasse.

Solvig turned to look at her patrol, that was standing obediently behind her. She yawned, looking bored.

"Alright guys, we're just gonna go 'round the West quad around the tanks and come back. Just follow me. 'Kay?" She said rather apathetically, gesturing for them to follow her. With nothing else to go off of, they simply trailed behind her like ducks, out of the camp and passed the guards, barbed wire stretching farther than anyone could see, red and brown dirt staining their boots, all the way to the tank yard where both huge army vehicles and Jeeps with machine guns attached rested side by side. Soldiers milled around, some with tools covered in grease and some decked out with gear and gadgets that none of them had ever imagined. The boys looked around in wonder, never seeing anything like this before – this was the first time leaving camp for all of them, even Hasse, who had been there longer. Being their first patrol, they were alert like they should be, but it didn't seem like much of a serious event at all.

Suddenly, a Jeep with three drivers lurched out of it's parking spot, almost hitting the patrol and about four other people who were lucky they dodged fast enough.  
"Oi, Togusa-san, I think you may have pressed the pedal too hard."

"Uwaah! Look how they all dodged, it was like, slow motion, just like in anime!"

"Ahhh, I thought this thing would need more energy than that!"

Solvig's eye twitched, and she stomped over to the vehicle.

"YOU IDIOTS! YOU ALMOST GOT MY ENTIRE PATROL KILLED! AND THEY WERE JUST SENT HERE! IMAGINE THE PENALTY I'D GET!" She yelled, fuming.

Izaya and Shizuo looked at each other, dazed. They almost died and she was worried about her penalty? They looked over suddenly, hearing a loud smack, to find Kyohei with his palm against his forehead. "Those idiots..."  
"Ah? Is that Dotachin? DOTACHIN!" The younger boy and girl in the Jeep screamed, hopping out and running over to the terrified Kyohei. "IT'S BEEN SO LONG!" They clung to him, one on each arm. The man still in the Jeep waved to him as well.

"Oi, what are you two doing here...?" He asked his old friends.

"We thought it'd be fun!" They responded in unison.

"Oi, this ain't a tea party. We're on patrol! Now let's get out of here before we all get run over!" Solvig complained, marching ahead.  
The rest of the boys had no choice but to follow, the two reluctantly detachign themselves from Kyohei's arms.

"Hey, who were they...?" Izaya asked curiously as they walked away from the vehicles.  
"Just some old friends of mine..." Kyohei sighed. Izaya looked at him expectantly and he knew he curiosity was spiked. "The girl was Erika, the blonde was Walker, and the guy driving the Jeep was Togusa. I used to hang out with them in elementary school..." He explained further.  
"Oh, okay." Izaya nodded, his curiosity satiated.

The group continued on their patrol around pretty silently, as there was not much to be said and not much going on. It seemed peaceful... Boring, but perhaps it was better this way. While battles are exciting, they are also bloody, and all of the boys knew that.

"Alright boys, we're almost done so don't collapse on me now. Just about a quarter of a mile away from the east entrance. Think you can make it?"  
All of them, including Naoya who had been the epitome of energy when they left, groaned and sighed in response. Somehow, walking in this terrain was even more than they were prepared for.

"Shizuooooo, I'm tireddddd, my feet hurttttt..." Izaya complained, nearly falling into the taller blonde next to him.

"Just a little bit more, Iza." Shizuo encouraged. Izaya responded with a tired smile.

'Ehh... The ground seems a bit weird here..." Yuuya mumbled, stopping.

"Eh? Whaddaya mean?" Naoya asked, turning to look at his friend as he stopped as well.  
"Its like... I donno... It just-"

And then it was black.

_What's happening_

_Smoke... I can't hear... heartbeats... screaming?_

Izaya coughed as he awoke. Dirt clung to his uniform and stung his eyes. Smoke slithered into his throat. There was something over him... _Shizu-chan. _The blonde hair was covered in dirt as well. He was unconscious–alive, he could tell from the breathing and the hold he still had on him. Izaya reluctantly detached his arm and sat up. He flinched. His stomach hurt. Everything hurt. He just realized that. His vision cleared. The smoke dyed down. He felt like he was underwater. He thought he heard yelling. He lifted his hands. Dirt–_blood_. Droplets of it covered his hands. But none poured out. Was the blood his? Shizuo looked fine. There were no crimson spots on his uniform. So where-

Izaya turned to look around. He stopped.

And he screamed.

* * *

_a/n: So I haven't really finished chapter 5 yet... but I felt I made you guys wait too long... OTL so here's chapter 4. I'll work on 5 now... I'm sorry OTL_


	7. Chapter 5: So Hollow

_Arc 1; Title : Life is a Game_

_Quote: "Life is a game. Play it. Life is too precious. Do not destroy it."_

_Song: Hollow – Submersed_

_Chapter 4: So Hollow_

The raven gripped his dark hair with his hands, not caring in the least that they were covered in blood. He screamed, scratchy and hoarse, even through the dirt and smoke clogged his throat. He tried to back up, only kicking up more dirt. Everything around him was gone, there was no noise, no pain. Nothing except for him and the fading, broken, and twitching body bleeding out only a few feet away.

Right before his eyes was his new friend, the sweet, innocent, shy Hasse, slowly and painfully... dying. Crimson spurted from his neck, due to a sharp piece of glass from who-knows-where piercing right through. His eyes were wide open, frozen, in fear and horror and agony even as his heart ceased its rhythm.

Izaya didn't hear the shouting or see the soldiers until someone roughly grabbed his arms, pulling him out of the smoke. He felt like he didn't blink at all, and the taste of dirt enveloped his tongue – but it didn't infiltrate his lungs... because he didn't breathe. He couldn't, not even when medics and soldiers blocked his line of vision, not even when he was inside the medic tent, not even when his dear friend Shinra was shaking him by the shoulders, a muffled _"Snap out of it! Izaya! Izaya!"_ ringing in his ears like he was underwater.

He didn't realize he was still screaming, not even when a needle stuck his veins and the world blurred until it went dark completely as sweet unconsciousness took over.

"Hnn... nhnn..." Small whimpers escaped from Izaya's small pink lips as he came to. He was in his bed in their tent, he observed, as he opened his eyes and looked around. He brought a hand to his head as a sudden sharp, throbbing pain rushed through his skull. He felt like he was hit by a truck.

When the pain eased a bit, he tried to think about what happened before he passed out. Immediately, it all rushed back into his mind and his stomach churned. He thought he was going to throw up, so he got up quickly – bad idea. He stumbled and almost landed face first, except he was stopped by something. Better yet, someone. Even better than that, a certain blonde that was able to banish Izaya's sickness with just his presence.

"What do you think you're doing?" Shizuo scolded, moving the raven back onto his bed. Izaya let his head fall back on his pillow, and he took deep breaths to calm himself.

"I felt sick... I remembered what happened before... yeah..." He didn't even have the energy to lie, or go into details. It wasn't like Shizuo had to guess the reason for Izaya's fatigue.

"I feel better now though." He added, as to not make his companion worry.

Despite this, Shizuo still frowned and sat on the bed, petting the raven hair softly. He was quiet for a while, which was unlike Shizuo. Actually, as Izaya now realized, the entire camp was pretty quiet. He couldn't imagine why, after what happened... what time was it, anyway?  
Seeing how Shizuo didn't seem to be about to say anything anytime soon, Izaya spoke up. "...How long was I out...?"

"A few hours..." Shizuo quietly responded. "No one's been allowed out of the camp... I'm pretty sure everyone's eating. No one really wants to talk. I think they're afraid to talk about it... because it makes it real... everyone's afraid of breaking down..." The blonde said seriously, which was a bit odd for him. But it was understandable.

"Shouldn't you be ea-"

"You were screaming." Shizuo interrupted. "All the way to the medic tent. You wouldn't stop until Shinra gave you a tranquilizer. That's what he told me. I can't decide whether I'm grateful or upset that I didn't hear it."

Izaya frowned in guilt. He didn't realize he had been so... so... distraught. He tried to bring his mind back to that place, to that time so maybe he could understand the pain he felt, so he could offer some explanation and apology to Shizuo, and Shinra. God, Shinra must have been so scared. Everyone must have been. For some reason though, his mind built a barrier and he couldn't get to that memory, and he was conflicted between joy and disappointment at this fact.

"I'm... I'm sorry... I... it was so... I wasn't..." Izaya tried, and failed, to apologize and explain correctly to his blonde best friend.

"I wish I could have protected you... " Shizuo whispered. "From seeing that..."  
"But you did protect me..." Izaya spoke up. "I had to push you off to get up... The first thing you did when the landmine went off was cover me... You always protect me, protozoan." Izaya said solemnly.

Shizuo smiled sadly, but didn't say anything. He still felt horrible for being able to simply be unconscious while others were hurt, dead, or traumatized. He'd have to get over it though – for Izaya.

"Do you, feel any pain?" Shizuo finally managed to speak, switching the attention off of himself. If he continued to think about the state Izaya had been in, he was sure he was going to lose it.

"Not really..." Izaya trailed off, trying to lie through his teeth. His head ached, more then it probably should have, and his stomach kept flipping and churning as if he was on a ship at sea. It disappeared for a while, once Shizuo caught him, but it was slowly coming back from the attempt to remember what happened. And don't even get him started on the pain that was inflicted in his throat... But he didn't want Shizuo to worry about it.

Shizuo rose an unconvinced eyebrow at him, giving him the 'tell me or I'll beat it out of you' looks. Izaya rarely got them, so he knew he had to take it seriously. Lying to Shizuo only ended up with worse repercussions later.

"Just a slight pain in the back of my head and throat, but it's probably nothing. - Like I said, you protected me."

Tch, slight pain, yeah right. For all they knew, Izaya could have a concussion when they hit the ground. The blonde may have been able to protect him from the blast, but the impact to the ground was wild, anything could have happened.

"We should get it checked out by Shinra," Shizuo said, slowing his hand that stroke the raven hair a bit. Izaya looked into Shizuo's mocha's eyes, searching, unreadable. This was just one of those times where both of them were unreadable.

"But I'm fine, really Shizu-chan! You never fail to protect me..." Izaya's voice began trailing off, his gaze turning to the floor slightly. Shizuo knew this look, he knew what it meant. "Even before all this, you always protected me-"

"Bull crap," Shizuo hissed, stopping the massage he was giving the raven unconsciously. Pain was swelling up within his gut, the same pain he felt before all of this became reality. He wasn't able to protect Izaya back home, no matter what the raven claimed. Izaya was still in that god forsaken house with that god forsaken father of his. He hadn't saved him at all.

Shizuo had been so warped in his thoughts he barely even noticed his companion looking up at him softly. "But you did the best you could, and that's all that matters. - And besides, I'm still here, aren't I?" The raven gently reached over, placing his pale hand on Shizuo's cheek. The brute never expected him to- What? What was he doing? The blonde honestly didn't even hear what he had just said, being distracted. But as he stared deeply into those ruby-red eyes, he found some peace through his vivacious mind; somehow.

"I would've gave up, but you kept me going, you protozoan." The raven's face looked a bit red as he quickly removed his hand from Shizuo's skin, looking the other way as if to pretend he didn't do that. Shizuo just halfheartedly smiled to himself, starting to pet the raven hair once more. He would play it Izaya's way, for now.

"Fine fine, I'll go see Shinra, you stubborn brute," Izaya sighed with a teasing tone behind his voice. That was the Izaya he knew.

"Okay, we'll see him at dinner. - Which we should probably go to." Izaya's eyes lowered a bit, clenching his stomach a little tighter. The blonde understood, Izaya really didn't feel like eating right now, not when his stomach was full of the sick reality of what just happened. But that didn't change the fact that they were still in a war, a war where the enemy would attack at any time, and their supplies would vanish. Izaya was already a stick, he needed more meat on his bones.

"You can go on without me, I think I'm going to skip-out on food today. - I'll go see Shinra when you're done."

"No," Shizuo quickly responded, his hand in Izaya's hair going still instantly. It seemed to shock the raven, as he looked back up at him. "You need to eat something, even if it is just rice." They never had much to chose from, but they at least always had some rice. Rice was just a plain filler that he would hopefully be able to keep in. Izaya opened his mouth, about to retaliate, but Shizuo glared at him. There was no way he was going to allow Izaya to get himself out of this. He needed to eat even if his stomach didn't want him too.

After some time, Shizuo somehow managed to convince Izaya to get out of bed and try to eat something. It probably wasn't the best choice to make, but the raven needed to have something in that belly of his. Even though they weren't on the battlefield, patrolling around camp was exhausting the raven; Shizuo noticed. Izaya wasn't used to carrying large, heavy objects, which included artillery. Energy was more essential then ever. However, that was a huge problem. The raven could hardly stomach eating a lot, mostly due to the fact that he hardly ate anything back at home. No, it wasn't Izaya's fault, he would never stop eating because he was self conscious of himself, it was that bastard's fault-

No, Shizuo wasn't going to think about that. It would only make things even worse then they were now.

Stick to happy thoughts.

Stick to happy thoughts.

Stick.

To.

Happy.

Thoughts.

Without even realizing it, Shizuo and Izaya came up to the rather silent cafeteria tent. Usually it was buzzing with activity, echoing with people laughing half-coherently as they drank their share of alcohol. Nearly nothing could stop their merry chatter, not even the higher-ups could quiet them until their third request.

Yet, there was no chatter to be heard right now. Nothing but the soft clinking of spoons, forks, bowls, and other utensils made any high-pitched sounds. Every now and then, there would be a cough, even a sneeze. But other then that, silence. It was so unnerving, Shizuo wasn't so sure eating dinner was worth entering or not. All these people, mourning over the sudden and inconvenient loss may worsen Izaya's state, and Shizuo didn't want to risk that right now. Yet, Izaya needed to eat, food would help distract his brain from what had just happened; from what he saw. Besides, the nourishment was much needed.

"Come on," he said hesitantly. Izaya glanced up at him, but didn't say a word. He was probably observing him, like always. He hoped the raven didn't notice his discomfort, that wouldn't help their situation at all.

Unconsciously, Shizuo moved the tent's entrance flap up, allowing Izaya to crawl through with the blond following closely behind. There were people talking after all, but their whispers were so hushed that not even Shizuo's sensitive ears could pick up the conversations to their fullest. Was it sad that he was relieved that he couldn't hear the conversations?

"Shizu-chan?" Izaya's low whisper suddenly streamed through his ears, snapping the brute out of his thoughts. The raven was looking at him rather worriedly, even to the point where he had reached over and grasped a small part of his sleeve. When did he do that? Shizuo didn't even feel him touch him... Had he been so out of it that he didn't even notice Izaya?

Dammit. How the hell was he going to be able to comfort Izaya if he didn't pay any attention to him? What if something bad happened in those few seconds where he was daydreaming?

"S-sorry, spaced out for a second," he whispered back, gently ruffling the worried raven's hair. Shizuo wanted to slap himself so hard for blanking out like that. He needed to be there for Izaya, even if it meant disregarding himself.

Izaya opened his mouth, his deep red-eyes looking at him with an unreadable expression, but before he even said anything, he quickly closed it. His eyes suddenly darted to the dirt floor, enveloping his face in a dark downcast.

"Hey," he frowned, gently placing a hand on his shoulder and shaking it lightly. Izaya just ignored him, as if he himself had zoned-out. Greattt, now he may never know what was bothering Izaya so much. Shizuo's heart felt as if someone had a burning stick and was holding it up to his heart, trying to burn a hole in it. Why was seeing Izaya like this making him feel so horrible?

Seeing the doctor running up to them snapped the blond out of his thoughts unwillingly. Even when Shizuo tried to remember what he was thinking about and where it would possibly lead, he lead himself to a dead end. Why did Shinra always have to come at the worst times?

"Izaya!" He immediately whispered, going straight-up to downcast raven and pulling him in for a hug. Izaya didn't even seem prepared for it, as he held his arms out at his sides, as if fearing he was going to lose his balance. Then again, this was Izaya they were talking about. He managed to slip over a bullet casing during training.

"How you feeling?" The worried and bumbling doctor asked desperately. Despite his smile, Shizuo could tell there were stress marks trying to mask themselves. They weren't doing such a good job unfortunately.

"Okay," Izaya plainly replied. It was obvious to Shizuo that he was just saying that. He couldn't blame him for it, Shinra looked like a complete wreck. "Just tired."

"That's good." Slowly, Shinra began releasing Izaya from his grip, pulling him arms length away. Those glass-covered eyes were looking the raven up and down, mentally giving him a health and mental evaluation. The frown on Izaya's face seemed to grow more evident, but the doctor didn't seem to notice.

"Lets get you something to eat, that should help you." Izaya just nodded, muttering something under his breathe. Shizuo tried to strain his hearing to pick-up what he had said, but he was too late. He didn't know what was going on in the raven's head. Guilt? Probably, even though none of this was his fault, he would still find a way to blame it on himself. Ahhh, that was just the way he was, the way he learned to be.

Shizuo lead Izaya over to the table, seeing some of the other troops steal a glance their way. There was no doubt that they were looking at Izaya. If someone came in camp screaming, that always drew attention, whether they wanted to or not. Shizuo just wanted to yell at them so they would mind their own business, but that would cause so much commotion. Izaya would freak out and notice as well. He didn't need that kind of attention right now, not when his mind was so vulnerable to everyone and everything.

They took their seats, Shinra sitting on one side of Izaya while Shizuo sat at the other. It was a bit odd, seeing Shinra sitting there. That was the seat where Hasse used to sit every now and then, always preying on the food Izaya didn't finish. The blonde always wanted to punch the kid, Izaya needed to eat all his food. Looking back on his feelings now, he couldn't help but feel guilty. The boy was just as hungry as everyone else there, they hardly gave out enough food to feed everyone. Hasse was just eating the food instead of wasting it.

Ah, what was he doing? The brute couldn't let these thoughts plague him, Izaya would only pick-up on them sooner or later, especially when they started showing through his usual persona. Taking a peek at Izaya, his eyes weren't on Shinra at all, who was babbling about flowers and roses. He was just looking at his food, twirling it with his fork. His eyes were sunken, staring absent-minded into space.

"Come on, you need to eat," Shizuo frowned, his voice being a bit louder then he would've hoped. Izaya jumped in his seat, knees hitting the table with a rather hard thud, and his fork dived to the floor. All eyes were on them now, even eyes from other tables. It felt like they were in a zoo, being the saddest exhibit in human history.

"Sorry, are you okay?" He quickly apologized. He didn't know what to do, he didn't mean to scare him...

The raven slowly turned to him, eyes a bit shaky. Shizuo hated seeing him like this, it was the same face he made when he was on the verge of tears. Dammit, he felt his heart ache in pure agony, a blade slicing down the center of his heart.

"I-I," Izaya trailed off, trying to put on a strong face to no avail. He looked really hurt. Did scaring him so suddenly do this to him-

Those deep-red eyes twitched to the other faces in the room, examining all the people that were staring at him like he was some kind of freak. The more he stared back, the glossier they became.

Shizuo scowled. Of course Izaya would notice the people who were staring at him, he was more observant then any one in this camp. Izaya liked observing other people, he didn't like other people observing him. Shizuo needed to get him away.

"I'm fine Shizu-chan," the small raven suddenly smiled. It seemed real, nearly convincing, if anyone but Shizuo was looking upon that smile. Usually when the raven was happy or semi-content, his eyes would smile too, as if he was part of a party no one else knew about.

"We'll just eat in the tent," Shizuo spoke, rising from his seat. Shinra and the others at the table lowered their forks to their plates, staring up at him and Izaya. They all seemed like they wanted to say something, but they didn't. It was fine with Shizuo, he didn't want to deal with anyone else today.

"Come on Izi," Shizuo whispered, gently reaching over and moving the loose strands of his raven locks behind his ear. Izaya seemed to shiver a bit, slowly looking up into Shizuo's mocha eyes, as if snapping out of some trance. That's good, he was focusing on him now. He just needed to keep it this way.

"Why? Everyone's here-" Shizuo shot him a glare, one that Izaya decided not to challenge as he went silent. Sadly, the blonde felt like he had to do this all day.

"We're going back to the tent to eat." The raven didn't even argue back this time. He nodded, slowly slipping out of the bench-table and grabbing his plate. Shizuo followed suit, grabbing his own plate. Izaya's fork had landed on the sandy ground, becoming useless. Izaya would not have mind using it anyway, but seeing as he didn't even seem to realize it was missing, he didn't say a word. They could just use his.

"Can we stop by later so you can check on Izaya's head? I want to be sure he doesn't have a concussion or anything."

"I already checked," Shinra smiled lightly, seeming proud of himself. "There was nothing wrong."

Shizuo couldn't help but smile to himself, letting out a sigh of relief he hadn't even known he was holding in until now. "Thanks." He then turned his attention back to Izaya, who was looking over at Shinra softly.

"Thanks Shinra, you're the best." The doctor just smiled a bit more before returning to his food. But as soon as Shinra turned away, Izaya's face sunk a bit, as he didn't have to keep-up the mask he was just wearing.

"Just focus on my hand, nothing else," Shizuo ordered, slipping his hand over the raven's. It was so small compared to his, the soft skin could have belonged to a small china doll.

The two slowly made their way out of the cafeteria tent and over to their own. No one else was there, it was just the way they left it. Then again, who could sleep after what happened? - Well, when they weren't, knocked out. Shizuo was going to stop thinking now.

"Sorry Shizu-chan," Izaya suddenly sighed, taking a seat on the bed. He no doubt hated the fact that his uneasiness was shown through his mask, making the blonde worry. But Shizuo didn't care about that. All he cared about was Izaya's safety.

"There's nothing to be sorry for." Izaya fidgeted a bit, looking around as he sighed again. He no doubt realized he was missing his fork by now. He was just so out of it, it was frightening. Shizuo didn't know how much longer he could take this.

"Here." The raven looked over as Shizuo reached over with his own fork, scooping some of the rice and chicken on the utensil. "You need to eat at least a little bit." Izaya opened his mouth to protest, but Shizuo didn't give him the time. He gently brought the fork up to his tender lips and forced the food into his mouth.

"Wh-what...?" Izaya blushed over in complete shock, swallowing the food that had been forced in his mouth.

"Either eat, or I'll force feed you." His voice was stern and demanding. Izaya knew he'd have to listen now, he had no other choice.

"You're mean protozoan," he whined, prying the fork away from Shizuo, that undying blush still plaguing his lips. Shizuo couldn't help but feel a wave of victory sweep over him. It was always so hard to get him to eat anything.

"Yeah yeah," he simply waved. Izaya ate his dinner, mostly in silence. Shizuo expected this. At least he was eating, it was something. He was able to eat more then half of it before handing the fork back over to Shizuo, wiping the rice off his face with his sleeve. The blonde took it, quickly scarfing his food down. It wasn't abnormal for him, this was just the way he was.

"Thank you..." Izaya's small voice suddenly snapped the blonde out of his thoughts. He sounded really apologetic this time.

"Someone's gotta look after you," Shizuo couldn't help but smirk, reaching over and running his free hand through Izaya's silky raven hair. "Besides, you're my flea, and I'm not going to let anyone mess with my Flea."

* * *

_a/n: okay, Tai here, sorry for taking so long... again. Ugh, I have to work on well... working better. Though a larger part of it was written by Kendall not me! Which explains why its highly in Shizuo's POV and written in a slightly different style. I wrote the very beginning, she wrote the rest. Though, if you couldn't tell, thats a good thing!_


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